THE SEASON opener for the 2024/25 Women’s National Basketball League (WNBL) saw the Townsville Fire claim a big win over the newly formed Geelong United by 26 points at Geelong Arena on Wednesday night.

It was the perfect way to kick off the season, with United in action right away having changed from the Melbourne Boomers and moved down the highway as the WNBL furthers its reach around Australia and forms a connection with another town in Victoria.

Despite the exciting occasion, the Fire were simply too good and dominated from start to finish en route to an emphatic first win.

Geelong United (58) def. by Townsville Fire (84)

The Fire’s offensive weapons were simply too much for United to handle, with Townsville sharing the load and jumping out to an early lead. At the first change, the Fire led by seven points and signs were looking ominous early.

The second term saw more of the same, with United producing solid plays and getting the crowd excited, but could not slow down a tremendously balanced Townsville side. The visitors held a 14-point lead at the main break, and looked completely in control of the match.

Coming out of half-time, the Fire snuffed out any chance of a comeback, restricting the home side to just nine points for the term, and continuing to utilise their multiple avenues of scoring. At the final change, Townsville boasted a 28-point lead and was doing an excellent job at playing party poopers in Geelong’s first game.

The Fire took the foot off the pedal in the fourth quarter, allowing the WNBL’s newest side to stop the bleeding a bit. However, the damage was already done and Townsville was never surrendering such an insurmountable lead and cruised home to a 84-58 win.

In the battle of the Frolings, Alicia took home the chocolates, posting 17 points on 6/8 shooting and pulled down nine rebounds and leading her side to victory. Captain Courtney Woods had 12 points on 5/11 shooting, while Zia Cooks came off the bench for 15 points in 23 minutes, while Lauren Cox rounded out Townsville’s double-digit scorers with 12 points.

For United, Keely Froling was a shining light in a tough loss, showing her leadership as captain to deliver 15 points and seven rebounds. Despite trailing all match, Geelong’s skipper never surrendered and was a reliable contributor when baskets were proving hard to come by.